ABSTRACT
Botulism is an infrequent but devastating disease because the botulism toxin is one of the most dangerous toxins known (1). The disease should be considered a true med ical emergency. The causative organism, Clostridium botulinum, is an anaerobic, spore-forming, Gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria that is widely distributed in nature and is found mainly in the soil. These organisms elaborate the toxin, and a given strain of the organism produces only one toxin type (2 ).
